Harlan Dengel

Harlan Dengel, 62, of Billings, Montana, passed away at his home on June 29, 2026. A memorial service for Harlan will be held on Friday, July 10, at 10:00 AM at Dahl Funeral Chapel in Billings, Montana.

He was a cherished father, cousin, and friend and his presence will be deeply missed and forever remembered. Harlan was born on September 30, 1963 in Dickinson, North Dakota to Gertrude and Carl Dengel, joining two brothers, Harley and Howard Dengel. After his mother remarried in 1969, he moved to a farm south of Hebron, North Dakota and learned the ropes of dairy farming and farming in general from his stepfather, Arnold Zimmerman, including working on tractors and anything else that ran. While growing up in Hebron, on weekends, he often visited his dad and his aunt and uncle Dorothy and Jack Herold and his cousins Marita and LeAnne Herold in Gladstone, North Dakota. Many cousin memories were forged there, playing monopoly, listening to music and talking. Harlan and LeAnne enjoyed watching scary movies together and saw Raiders of the Lost Arc together when it first appeared in theaters. He enjoyed riding motorcycles with his brother Harley.

Harlan graduated from Hebron High School in 1981 and went to trade school in Wahpeton, North Dakota. He would later earn his Master Plumber license and worked on large commercial plumbing installations until the time of his passing. He married Stacey Gramling on October 6, 1989 in Helena, Montana. The couple had three children, Kaitlyn, Mathew, and Nathan. Harlan’s work took the family back to North Dakota where they lived in the Bismarck and Lincoln areas. He enjoyed the outdoors, fishing and camping and shared those interests with his children. Spending time with his children was important to Harlan; he showed them where he worked and the projects he worked on and had special outings like visiting an alpaca farm.

Harlan was a skilled and conscientious craftsman who took his work seriously. He moved to Billings, Montana in 2006 and worked for Precision Plumbing and then Christoferson Plumbing. Harlan worked on a number of large commercial projects as a Master Plumber in Williston, North Dakota during the Bakken oil boom and in Billings. He became quite the online gaming aficionado, especially during his time working in Williston. Harlan was a caring son and a long distance caregiver for his mother after she entered the Richardton Health Center in 2009 until her passing in 2016. As a child, he was introduced to pet birds having a number of parakeets as pets, and continued that interest by choosing his prized conure parrot, Jackson. Jackson kept Harlan company on a few road trips before Harlan was able to find a suitable sitter for Jackson. Harlan worked hard, but also took time to enjoy other hobbies he was passionate about --boating and fishing. On a 2024 fishing trip to Alaska with his cousin, Marita and her husband Paul, he was the boat captain skillfully navigating the ocean and in and out of the small inlet harbor. On the first day of the fishing trip, he caught the largest fish of the entire group at the lodge – a 92 pound halibut. They were planning another fishing trip back to Alaska this year.

Harlan is survived by his children, Kaitlyn Fierro (Sara) of Waldorf, Maryland, Mathew Dengel of Mandan, ND, and Nathan Dengel of Flasher, ND; granddaughters Eleanor Dengel and Raelynn Fierro; brother, Howard (Marge) Dengel of Dickinson, North Dakota, and numerous cousins. He is preceded in death by his parents, his stepfather, and brother Harley Dengel.